At a ceremony last Monday, the president presented the U.S. ambassador with two decorations, including one he invented for the occasion.
“This is a day to commemorate, but it is a somewhat sad day because a great friend of our country is leaving us,” Republican President Nayib Bukele said on Monday night, January 18th.
He then presented the Ambassador of the United States, the post ends today, the National Order José Matías Prim in the rank of Silver Cross, the highest decoration that can be awarded by the Executive branch.
Likewise, the president invented a new order, the Francisco Morazán, and the first to receive it was Johnson himself for his service to the country.
SEE: Ambassador Ronald Johnson: “US friendship depends on respect for democracy”
During his tenure as an American diplomat, the ambassador sought key supports in the country, particularly in the context of the pandemic, where he handled significant donations of personal protective equipment, fans and tests.
However, throughout his tenure, and beyond his closeness to the country, Ronald Johnson showed an almost unconditional friendship with the President of the Republic and this was not always compatible with democratic interests and health. of the Savior.
When the State Department summoned the Bukele government to weaken democratic institutions and attack critical media, Johnson merely said the two governments were friends and friends “do not always agree on all issues.”
SEE: Freedom of speech is essential to democracy, says Ambassador Johnson
Faced with reports of coups in press freedom, the ambassador said he felt “motivated” because there are no imprisoned journalists or closed media. He said little about the constant harassment of journalists, the president’s insults, the instrumentalization of institutions to intimidate media, and the political use of the pattern.
This behavior is consistent with Trump’s foreign policy, willing to let go of abuses so that his allies would join his projects, so that these would be human rights violations.
On Monday Nayib Bukele said goodbye to an ambassador and “his” friend. Johnson’s successor may be less indolent in the face of his abuses.